Fillmore And Geary Take Off! The Adventures of a Robot Boy and a Boy Boy - Hardcover

Mark Shulman studied film history at the University of Buffalo. Before writing picture books full time he was a camp counselor, radio newscaster, New York City tour guide and an advertising creative director. He lives in New York.

Phillip Fickling is an international artist and paper engineer. A native of Seattle, Phillip studied at the Burnley School of Professional Art. He lives in New Zealand.

Grade 1-3–Fillmore, a human, and his robot friend, Geary, live on Planet Zada. Deciding that they want a pet, they head for the Invention Room and build a dog. However, their creation acts like a robot/boy, since he has never seen a real canine. Fillmore, Geary, and Sbot then set off in a rocket to visit the five planets in their system that have dogs. The first four are a disaster, but they find "the right kind of dogs" on Earth (labeled "the blue planet"), only to discover that they're not what they wanted after all. The computer-generated cartoons are perfect for the narrative's futuristic feel. Many of the items on the pages are labeled, giving readers additional text and jokes. For instance, on Planet One, dogs act like people. The bank is called "Savings and Bone," there is a "No Barking Zone," and a "Humans must be on leash" sign is posted. At times the illustrations appear a bit frenetic because of the labels and busy spreads, but older readers will enjoy their goofiness. Overall, this is a title to consider for libraries fielding requests for robot stories.–Lisa Gangemi Kropp, Middle Country Public Library, Centereach, NY
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